Page 122 of Gold Rush

There’s a buzzer to the left of the doors, opposite from the gold plate. I press it once, then wait, debating if I should text Rory or just head back home and wait for her there. I’m pretty sure she’s avoiding me, following yesterday, but she’s likely avoiding me and doing something important. I don’t want her to think I don’t respect her work. When she showed up at my office, it was to do me a favor. All I’m offering is roasted chicken with sliced brussels sprouts and chunks of sweet potato.

A middle-aged man in a security uniform appears on the other side of the door. He surveys me through the glass, then pushes the door open a couple of inches. “Can I help you?”

“I’m here to see Rory Kensington?”

He holds the door open a little wider.

“Thanks.” I step through, glancing around the interior.

It’s a cool building. Not new and shiny and expensive. The brass light fixtures look outdated, and there is no shortage of scuffs on the marble floor. But it has a lot more character than where I work.

“Name?”

“Flynn Parks?” Again, it comes out like a question.

The man who let me in swipes his badge and enters another section of the lobby. There’s a desk enclosed behind a heavy layer of glass. He picks up a phone and dials. I hear him talking, but it’s too low for me to make out any distinct words.

I glance around. There’s a small seating area in front of a set of double doors that presumably lead to the offices. I can see an elevator ahead and half of a door beside it.

“She’ll be right out,” the man tells me, his voice distorted through a speaker.

“Thanks,” I call back, not sure if he can hear me through the glass.

I’ve just decided to sit down when Rory appears. Her hair is up in a messy bun, and her blazer is missing. There’s a smudge of ink on her left hand.

“Hey. What-what are you doing here?”

I hold up the container. “I brought you dinner since you were working so late.”

She walks over, teeth briefly sinking into her lower lip. “I, uh, already ate.”

I nod. “Keep it anyway. You can have it for lunch tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Rory takes the food. “Thanks.”

I nod again. “Also, Carson came by. He wanted to talk to you.”

Rory frowns. “About what?”

“You’d have to ask him. I got the sense he wanted to apologize about … things.”

“I’m not interested.”

I nod, relieved by that response. “I said I’d pass along the message. So … I did.”

God. The trip here took twenty-five minutes. I should have planned out what I was going to say when I arrived, obviously.

“Everything okay here?” I add. “You’re not normally working this late.”

“Just busy. Trying to catch up on some things since I’ll be out part of next week.”

Catch up on things … because I set her behind yesterday. Which I feel guilty for and even more uneasy when I realize she’s out part of next week for Lili’s wedding. I’m nervous for the wedding itself and about the conversation I’ll have no excuse not to have once it’s over.

“Right.”

“You didn’t need to come all this way. You could have just called.”

“I’m not supposed to look at screens,” I remind her.